I daintily worked through the pretty pink cupcake I was eating, trying to be careful to not click my fork on the plate (etiquette class 101 – thanks aunty Kas!). It’s a hard task though trying to eat a cupcake these days especially when all you want is a sugar fix with your caffeine hit after a very tiring Saturday morning. My mulberry cupcake, a luscious cake topped with swirls of cream cheese and pink frosting with an actual mulberry nestled on top. The frosting was twice as thick as the base so you see it takes intricate work to ensure you have the right amount of cake and frosting in each forkful otherwise you’ll risk being left with too much frosting in the end. I miss the good old cupcakes when they only came in 2 types. Huge vanilla sponges with either pink or chocolate topping both with sprinkles on top and the only way to eat them was in 4 big mouthfuls. And certainly none of this absurdity of eating a cupcake with a fork!

This morning for instance. Had the cleaning lady come in nice and early. After explicit instructions on how to wipe down the kitchen counters and furniture and polish the timber trims, I went to tend to laundry. Separating the whites from the colors. Preening the collars and underarms. Soaking my construction shorts. And putting the first load of linen on gentle wash, I went back to check on the cleaning lady. “Vhat are you doing?!!” There she was polishing off the furniture with sugar soap. Not that one, this one!” I bellowed banging the correct bottle on the top. The poor short lady just stood blinking at me. What are you starring at me for?? Wipe it again with this cleaner. See. This one. And wheennn it’s dry then polish it off this one. This. This one. This yellow bottle. Achaaaa?” I am sure she saw actual fumes come out of my ears then.

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In hindsight, it is only fair I mention that the sugar-soap, the all-purpose-cleaner and the furniture polish were all in bottles in shades of yellow. And as if the cleaning natak of the morning wasn’t enough, in the midday sun I had to push through throngs of diwali shoppers in town to find a vase. Not any type of vase. But a semi circular test tube kind that had two mouth opening for that  one unoccupied spot in the lounge and of course it would be an absolute crime to just let it be, rightt?

Come to think of it, a vase by any other name would still be a vase and for a good house scrubbing, a tub of hot soapy water will do the same job as all those detergents my poor cleaning lady couldn’t comprehend. For what’s already tangled, we sure are making life a tad bit more complicated than it really is!

So whatever it is you’re trying to get on today, keep it simple and enjoy the rest of your weekend! Oh and for eater’s sake, make less complicated cupcakes!